Friday, October 26
Milwaukee, Wis.
7:00 PM
Creighton University
at
Marquette
Jaali Winters has a double-double in all five matches this fall against top-25 competition.
Photo by: A.J. Olnes
#10 Volleyball Visits #18 Marquette and DePaul This Weekend
10/23/2018 11:45:00 AM | Volleyball
Creighton looks to extend win streak against Golden Eagles and Blue Demons
Download Notes as a PDF
This Week's Schedule
Oct. 26 7 p.m. #10 Creighton at #18 Marquette (BEDN) Milwaukee, Wis. (Al McGuire Center) | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS
Oct. 27 6 p.m. #10 Creighton at DePaul Chicago, Ill. (McGrath-Phillips Arena) | LIVE VIDEO | LIVE STATS
This Week
No. 10 Creighton (18-4, 10-0 BIG EAST) hits the road to take on the other two teams in the BIG EAST that are located in the Central Time Zone.
On Friday at 7 p.m., the Bluejays visit No. 18 Marquette (19-4, 9-1 BIG EAST) in a battle of the top two teams in the league standings. That contest will take place at Al McGuire Center.
On Saturday, Creighton travels to Chicago, Ill., to visit DePaul (5-16, 3-7 BIG EAST) for a 6 p.m. contest at McGrath-Phillips Arena.
Broadcast Information
Both matches this weekend will have free video webcasts.
Friday's contest at Marquette will air on the BIG EAST Digital Network. The match can be viewed on FOXSportsGo.com or via the FOXSportsGo app.
Saturday's match airs on Blue Demons All-Access at DePaulBlueDemons.com/watch.
Exact links to both broadcasts can be found on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.
Live Stats Information
Both matches this weekend will have free live stats. Exact links can also be found on the GoCreighton.com volleyball schedule page.
Scouting #10 Creighton
Creighton is 18-4 this season despite facing a grueling schedule that includes five national seeds from a year ago, and 12 contests against teams that played in the postseason a year ago.
Creighton's best wins have come over No. 5 Kentucky, No. 21 Marquette, Northern Iowa, NC State, Iowa State and Wichita State, while the losses have come against Northern Iowa, No. 7 Nebraska, No. 8 Illinois and No. 10 USC. CU has won 10 straight matches, all in league play, while dropping just five sets in that stretch.
Three returning All-Americans pace the Bluejays. Senior outside hitters Taryn Kloth (4.06 kps., .268%) and Jaali Winters (3.71 kps., 3.14 dps.), as well as 2017 BIG EAST Libero of the Year Brittany Witt (4.40 dps.) were named Preseason All-BIG EAST this season. Winters was named MVP of the Bluejay Invitational on Sept. 9, while Kloth owns five matches of 23+ kills this fall and is second in the league with 325 kills.
Creighton boasts seven newcomers, including four freshmen who were ranked as the No. 10 recruiting class in the nation, in addition to three transfers. One of those is junior Madelyn Cole, a Marshall transfer who leads the BIG EAST with 10.62 assists per set.
Creighton was picked to finish second in the BIG EAST Conference, but has already swept preseason league favorite Marquette and at 10-0 is the only remaining team that is unbeaten in league play.
CU averages 13.96 kills, 1.55 aces, 16.52 digs and 2.25 blocks per set on .249 hitting overall.
Scouting No. 18 Marquette
Ranked No. 18 nationally, Marquette is off to a 19-4 start that includes a win over No. 10 USC. All four losses have come against ranked teams, dropping matches to then-No. 16 Baylor, No. 3 BYU, No. 6 Wisconsin and No. 10 Creighton.
Reigning BIG EAST Player of the Year Allie Barber (4.49 kps., .352%) leads the Golden Eagles on offense and is one of the best front row players in the nation.
U.S. Collegiate National Team middle blocker Jenna Rosenthal (2.63 kps., .364%, 1.04 bps.) is a force in the middle, and 2017 BIG EAST Freshman of the Year Hope Werch averages 2.13 kills per set and owns 33 aces to rank tied for second in the BIG EAST.
Martha Konovodoff averages 4.91 digs per set, and Lauren Speckman (7.01 aps.) and Sarah Rose (5.12 aps.) share setting duties.
The Golden Eagles average 14.71 kills, 1.84 aces, 15.57 digs and 1.79 blocks per set while hitting .276 as a team.
Marquette is 9-1 in league play, with all 10 matches being decided in exactly three sets.
Scouting DePaul
DePaul is 5-16 overall, and 3-7 in BIG EAST play. All three league victories have come at home.
The Blue Demons offense features six women with between 80 and 181 kills, a group led by Emma Price's 2.55 kills per set. Brittany Maxwell, a preseason All-BIG EAST performer, has not played this season.
Natalie Hayward (4.93 aps.) and Katie Dolan (4.30 aps.) split setting duties, and Isabelle Banez (4.81 dps.) tops the team in digs by a large margin.
As a team, DePaul averages 11.37 kills, 0.75 aces, 14.76 digs and 1.07 blocks per set on .151 hitting.
Creighton Coaches
Creighton is coached by Kirsten Bernthal Booh (Truman State, 1997), who is in her 16th season with a 335-164 record. She's led Creighton to four straight BIG EAST titles, and five league crowns in the last six years. Booth led the Bluejays to their first two Sweet 16's (2015, 2016) and first Elite Eight (2016) in program history. In 2016 she was recognized as VolleyballMag.com National Coach of the Year, BIG EAST Coach of the Year and AVCA East Region Coach of the Year.
The winningest coach in school history, Booth has taken Creighton to its only seven NCAA Tournament bids in the program's modern history. She's also coached CU into the top-25 each of the last seven years, another program first.
Booth came to Creighton after going 112-41 in three years at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. A native of Lincoln, Neb., Booth played volleyball at Truman State, where she was named conference MVP, an Academic All-American and Missouri's 1997 NCAA Woman of the Year. She ranked third in Division II history with 6,077 assists when she graduated.
Booth is assisted by Angie Oxley Behrens, Craig Dyer and Noel Carpio.
Series History vs. Marquette
Creighton is 14-4 all-time against Marquette, including a 10-1 mark in the past five seasons against the Golden Eagles. That includes a five-set victory in Milwaukee over Marquette to win the 2017 BIG EAST Championship, and a 3-0 sweep in Omaha last month.
Marquette needed just three sets to snap CU's 28-match win streak in league play last October in Milwaukee.
Eleven of the last 17 meetings have been sweeps, and teams to win the first set are 15-3 all-time in the history of the series. CU is also 3-0 in the fifth set all-time against the Golden Eagles.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 14-4 against Marquette and 10-1 against Ryan Theis.
Series History vs. DePaul
Creighton has won 11 of 12 previous meetings with DePaul, and is 11-0 since the two schools became BIG EAST rivals.
DePaul swept the first meeting in 2001 in DeKalb, Ill., before Creighton's recent run, which has included one five-set win (a CU comeback from down 0-2 in Omaha in 2015), five different four-set wins and five sweeps.
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is 11-0 against DePaul and 1-0 versus Marie Zidek.
Champions Clash
Since the reconfiguration of the BIG EAST in the summer of 2013, Creighton and Marquette are the only teams to win any sort of BIG EAST volleyball title.
Marquette won the regular-season and tournament title in 2013, while Creighton swept both titles in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017.
Below is a look at the record of each BIG EAST team (through Oct. 25) since the league's reconfiguration in 2013:
BIG EAST VB Standings Since 2013 (thru 10/25)
BIG EAST only All matches
Team (NCAA Bids) W L W L
Creighton (5) 89 9 147 45
Marquette (5) 78 20 136 49
Xavier 64 35 98 82
Butler 57 41 106 73
Seton Hall (1) 53 46 98 86
Villanova (1) 49 50 98 81
St. John's 42 57 102 86
Georgetown 23 76 57 117
DePaul 19 79 61 111
Providence* 11 71 53 99
*Providence rejoined the league for volleyball in 2014 and
its 2013 overall record (12-20) is not included above.
Player of the Year Showdown?
While 12 All-BIG EAST performers return from last year, it would seem that Marquette's Allie Barber and the Creighton duo of Taryn Kloth and Jaali Winters lead the way in the running for 2018 BIG EAST Player of the Year contention.
Barber has some of the top attacking numbers, Kloth leads the trio in aces and blocks, while Winters is the only true six rotation player of the bunch and is tops in the group in digs and double-doubles.
Statistic Kloth Winters Barber
Kills 325 297 337
Kills Per Set 4.06 3.71 4.49
Hitting Pct. .268 .228 .352
Attack Errors 110 101 72
Digs 107 251 44
Digs Per Set 1.34 3.14 0.59
Aces 18 16 0
Aces Per Set 0.22 0.20 0.00
Blocks 32 29 29
Blocks Per Set 0.40 0.36 0.39
Points 362.5 330.0 352.5
Points Per Set 4.53 4.12 4.70
Double-Doubles 1 12 0
BIG EAST Kills 134 128 138
BIG EAST Kills Per Set 3.83 3.66 4.60
BIG EAST Hitting Pct. .279 .269 .375
BIG EAST Attack Errors 43 36 29
BIG EAST Digs 47 92 15
BIG EAST Digs Per Set 1.34 2.63 0.50
BIG EAST Aces 10 9 0
BIG EAST Aces Per Set 0.29 0.26 0.00
BIG EAST Blocks 17 8 9
BIG EAST Blocks Per Set 0.49 0.23 0.30
BIG EAST Points 154.5 141.0 143.0
BIG EAST Points Per Set 4.41 4.03 4.77
BIG EAST Double-Doubles 1 4 0
BIG EAST Offensive POW 1 1 3
BIG EAST Defensive POW 0 1 0
Three Top Attackers Collide
One key player Creighton will try to slow is Marquette junior outside hitter Allie Barber, the 2017 BIG EAST Player of the Year and the 2018 Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year.
Barber had 21 kills (7.00 kps.) on .541 hitting in MU's win over the Bluejays in Milwaukee a year ago, but in Crieghton's last three head-to-head wins has a total of 44 kills (4.00 kps.) on .204 hitting in 11 sets.
Here's a look at the stats of the BIG EAST's top three outside hitters (Taryn Kloth, Jaali Winters and Allie Barber) in their six head-to-head matches over the past three seasons:
Name Wins SP K-E-TA PCT. SA D TB
Winters 5 21 82-31-238 .214 1 73 3
Kloth 5 21 70-27-191 .225 2 28 7
Barber 1 21 87-20-225 .298 1 19 7
Ranked vs. Ranked in the BIG EAST
The Sept. 23 match-up between No. 10 Creighton and then-No. 21 Marquette was the first regular-season BIG EAST match-up since 2005 that featured a pair of ranked teams.
You'd have to go back to October 29, 2005 to find the last previous time two ranked BIG EAST had faced each other in league play, when No. 7 Notre Dame beat No. 6 Louisville.
The last previous time any two BIG EAST foes faced each other while ranked at any point in time came Nov. 18, 2007, when No. 20 St. John's swept No. 21 Louisville in the title match of the conference tournament.
Creighton is currently ranked 10th, while Marquette is 18th.
All-American Effort
An honorable mention All-American in 2016, Taryn Kloth is well on her way to garnering even more accolades during her senior campaign.
In five contests this fall against teams who were ranked at the time of the match, Kloth has averaged 4.86 kills per set and hit a robust .310. She averages 21.4 kills per match against ranked opponents this year.
Top 25 History
Creighton is 12-74 all-time against teams in the top-25 of the AVCA poll, but 7-8 since the start of the 2016 NCAA Tournament.
Last year's win at No. 3 Washington was the highest-ranked team that the Bluejays have ever beaten, surpassing a win at No. 4 Kansas the previous December.
Creighton is 5-30 all-time against top-10 foes (5-23 under Kirsten Bernthal Booth).
Creighton lost its first 31 true road matches against top-25 foes, but has 'improved' to 4-36 after wins in recent seasons at No. 23 North Carolina (2015), No. 4 Kansas (2016), No. 3 Washington (2017) and No. 7 Kansas (2017).
Creighton is 76-21 all-time when playing as a ranked team, and also 8-13 all-time against ranked teams when ranked itself. That mark improves to 2-1 when both Creighton and its opponent are ranked in the top 10.
Since the start of the 2012 season, 28 of Creighton's 49 losses have come against ranked teams. In that same period, Creighton is 167-21 against unranked teams. Creighton has won 42 straight home matches over unranked teams.
This is the seventh time that Creighton has been ranked exactly 10th. The first six times were the previous six weeks.
4 Straight BIG EAST Regular-Season Titles
Creighton has won each of the last four BIG EAST regular-season titles. No team had won four straight regular-season BIG EAST titles (including shares) since Notre Dame won seven in a row from 1999-2005.
Notre Dame had also been the last team to win four or more straight outright BIG EAST regular-season titles, having claimed four in a row from 1999-2002. No team has ever won five straight outright titles, which CU is striving to do.
The only other team in Creighton history to win four (or more) straight regular-season titles was the men's soccer program, which claimed five straight MVC crowns from 1992-96. All five of those soccer titles were also outright titles.
Back-To-Back-To-Back-To-Back
Creighton won its fourth straight BIG EAST Championship title last year, becoming the first team to do so since Notre Dame won four in a row from 1995-98.
Creighton (2014-Present), Pittsburgh (1988-94) and Notre Dame (1995-98) are the only four schools to ever win back-to-back-to-back-to-back BIG EAST Championships in volleyball.
The only five schools nationally to win a league tournament each of the last four seasons are American, Coastal Carolina, Creighton, Denver and Western Kentucky.
Creighton is 9-1 all-time in five appearances at the BIG EAST Championships, reaching the final each time.
Dating back to its Missouri Valley Conference days, Creighton has made 15 straight appearances in a league tournament after appearing in just 4-of-9 tournaments prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival.
Creighton's current senior class is 67-3 against BIG EAST opposition, including a 6-0 mark in league tournament play.
Another 20 Win Season In Reach
Creighton is 18-4 this year, in search of 20 victories for the 10th time in the program's modern history, and seventh straight season.
When Kirsten Bernthal Booth was hired in 2003, Creighton's modern day school record for wins in a season was 16.
Creighton is also one of 17 schools with six straight seasons of 20+ wins (2012-17) entering this fall. That list features American, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington, Western Kentucky and Wichita State.
Among those to extend the streak to seven (or more) this year have been BYU.
The following schools are still trying to extend their streak of 20-win seasons in 2018, through matches of October 23rd.
Team 2018 W-L Next Match
Marquette 19-4 10/26
Stanford 18-1 10/26
Creighton 18-4 10/26
Florida 18-4 10/28
Penn State 17-3 10/26
Colorado State 16-6 10/25
American 16-9 10/26
Nebraska 15-5 10/24
Kentucky 14-4 10/26
Western Kentucky 14-9 10/26
Hawai'i 13-6 10/26
Kansas 13-6 10/27
Florida State 13-7 10/24
Washington 13-7 10/26
Texas 12-4 10/24
Wichita State 9-11 10/26
What's Your 20?
Speaking of the potential for 20 wins, if CU wins twice this weekend to accomplish the feat on Saturday, it'll match the earliest on the calendar in program history that the team has reached 20 victories.
The 2012 team won its 20th match on Oct. 27, as well. Last year's team won its 20th match on Nov. 5th, the second-quickest mark on the recordbooks.
Getting Better & Better
Friday will be Creighton's 500th match under Kirsten Bernthal Booth, and it continues to thrive under her direction.
Below is a look at Creighton's record under Booth in 50-match segments.
Match # W-L Opponent Date Result
50 25-25 Missouri State 10/22/04 L 0-3
100 56-44 Southern Illinois 09/16/06 W 3-1
150 88-62 vs. So. Illinois 11/23/07 W 3-1
200 115-85 at Missouri State 10/30/09 L 0-3
250 143-107 at #11 Nebraska 09/08/11 L 0-3
300 182-118 Illinois State 11/10/12 W 3-1
350 215-135 South Dakota 09/20/14 L 2-3
400 255-145 at DePaul 11/07/15 W 3-1
450 296-154 Northern Iowa 09/02/17 W 3-0
500 335-164 entering Friday at Marquette
14 Aces, 5 Errors
Creighton served up a season-high 14 aces against Butler and countered that with just five serving errors.
The +9 ace/error differential ranks tied for third-greatest since the program's 1994 restart, and was the best since a +10 (12 aces, 2 errors) disparity at DePaul on Oct. 3, 2014.
Diff. Aces Errors Opponent Date
+11 15 4 vs. NE Illinois 9/23/95
+10 12 2 at DePaul 10/3/14
+9 12 3 at Evansville 10/7/94
+9 15 6 UMKC 11/12/95
+9 14 5 Butler 10/20/18
+8 13 5 at New Mexico 9/4/04
+8 12 4 DePaul 9/25/16
You Got Served
Creighton put on its serving shoes in last week's victories over Xavier and Butler. The Bluejays had 10 aces and five service miscues against the Musketeers before unleashing 14 aces versus five service errors against the Bulldogs.
It was the first time Creighton's had consecutive matches of 10 or more aces since Sept. 29-30, 2006 (10 at Illinois State, 12 at Indiana State). Creighton hasn't had three straight matches of 10+ aces since Nov. 3-10, 2000 (11 at Southern Illinois, 10 at Evansville, 10 vs. Indiana State).
The 24 aces were CU's most in consecutive matches since Sept. 10-11, 2004 (11 at Missouri, 13 vs. Mississippi State).
It was also the first time ever that Creighton had consecutive matches with at least five more aces than errors.
Before last Saturday's match vs. Butler, the last time seven different CU players had an ace in the same match was Oct. 3, 2014 vs. DePaul. The first frame last Saturday was also the first time under Kirsten Bernthal Booth that six different players had an ace in the same set.
Recapping Butler
Creighton never trailed in a 3-0 win over Butler last Saturday. Some facts about that contest.
The 68-minute match was the shortest match since a 65-minute sweep at DePaul on Oct. 6, 2017.
It was the first time Creighton did not trail in a contest since Nov. 4, 2016, when it also dominated Butler without trailing.
Creighton's 29 digs were its fewest in any win since just 19 in a 3-0 demolition of Arkansas on Sept. 18, 2015.
Creighton's 66 attacks were its fewest since just 57 attacks on Oct. 18, 1995 at Saint Louis in a 3-0 loss. It was also the fewest attacks in a win in program history.
Zumach Nets League Honor
Kari Zumach was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week after helping CU to a pair of wins last week.
A Buffalo, Minn., native, Zumach averaged 2.31 points, 1.88 kills, 0.88 blocks and 0.50 digs per set while hitting .448 in victories over Xavier and Butler.
Zumach made her first career BIG EAST start last Thursday in a win over Xavier, and she came through with a season-high nine kills on season-high .471 hitting. She added three digs and tied for the team-lead with four blocks as CU rallied for a five-set win.
On Saturday vs. Butler, the right-side hitter had six kills on .417 hitting, adding three blocks and a dig. She had exactly two kills and one block in all three sets of a match that Creighton never trailed in at any point.
Zumach is the seventh different player in program history to be named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week, and first since Megan Ballenger on Oct. 31, 2016. The other five past honorees are Jess Bird, Lauren Smith (2x), Marysa Wilkinson (2x), Jaali Winters (6x) and Brittany Witt (2x).
Six Straight NCAA's
Creighton Volleyball has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last six seasons. They are the first women's team in any sport at Creighton to make six straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
Unbeaten In Conference
There are 32 conferences in the country, and Creighton is one of 20 teams that remains unbeaten in league play.
Team League W-L Conference
Alabama A&M 13-0 Southwestern
Texas State 11-0 Sun Belt
American 10-0 Patriot
BYU 10-0 West Coast
Creighton 10-0 BIG EAST
Kennesaw State 10-0 Atlantic Sun
Minnesota 10-0 Big Ten
Northern Iowa 10-0 Missouri Valley
Pittsburgh 10-0 Atlantic Coast
Stanford 10-0 Pacific 12
Stephen F. Austin 10-0 Southland
Cal Poly 9-0 Big West
Denver 9-0 Summit
Long Island 9-0 Northeast
UCF 9-0 American Athletic
VCU 9-0 Atlantic 10
Kentucky 8-0 Southeastern
Rice 8-0 Confrence USA
Howard 7-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic
Stony Brook 7-0 America East
Pirates At Play
Creighton has beaten Xavier 15 straight times, and won 23 straight sets over Seton Hall.
The 23 straight set victories over the Pirates is two away for the record against any opponent, Indiana State (25).
Most Consecutive Match Wins Over One Team
Wins Opponent Dates
19 Southern Illinois 2003-11
16 Indiana State 2005-Present
15 Xavier 2013-Present
Most Consecutive Set Wins Over One Team
Wins Opponent Dates
25 Indiana State 2005-09
24 Xavier 2015-18
23 Indiana State 2009-Present
23 Seton Hall 2015-Present
19 Providence 2014-17
You Dig?
They say that defense wins championships, and that's certainly proven true for Creighton.
Creighton has won 69 straight matches against BIG EAST teams when winning the dig battle, a streak that dates to Oct. 10, 2014 at Seton Hall.
All but one of Creighton's last 50 matches (against all foes) have been won by the team with more digs, which goes back to Sept. 15, 2017.
Keeping It 100
Creighton's senior class is 100-27 after reaching the century mark with a pair of victories last weekend against Butler. Creighton had reached 100 victories in a four-year span only three times previously, with the record being 107 from 2014-17.
Jaali Winters has played in all 100 of those wins, while Taryn Kloth's participated in 98 of them.
Most Wins, Four-Year Span
W-L Years
107-32 2014-17
104-31 2012-15
104-34 2013-16
100-27 2015-Pres.
94-36 2011-14
Most Wins, Appeared In As A Player
106 Marysa Wilkinson 2014-17
104 Lauren Smith 2013-16
102 Melanie Jereb 2012-15
101 Ashley Jansen 2012-15
100 Jaali Winters 2015-Pres.
98 Taryn Kloth 2015-Pres.
95 Kate Elman 2012-15
Best Starts After 22 Matches
At 18-4 overall, Creighton is off to its second-best start after 22 matches, and best in the program's BIG EAST era.
Only CU's 2012 team, which started 19-3, had a better mark at this point in the season.
Best Creighton Record After 22 Matches
W-L after 22 Year W-L after 24
19-3 2012 21-3
18-4 2018 ?
17-5 2017 19-5
16-6 2006 18-6
16-6 2013 18-6
16-6 2016 18-6
Halfway Home
Currently 10-0 in BIG EAST play, Creighton reached the midpoint of the league season during last Thursday's win against Xavier.
Creighton is 8-1 or better for the ninth straight half of league play. Creighton is 49-4 all-time in the first half of BIG EAST play, and 40-5 in the second half since joining the league in 2013.
League Record by Year
Year 1st Half 2nd Half Place
1994 2-8 1-9 T-9th MVC
1995 3-7 3-7 T-7th MVC
1996 2-7 3-6 T-6th MVC
1997 6-3 4-5 T-3rd MVC
1998 2-7 3-6 8th MVC
1999 5-4 4-5 5th MVC
2000 5-4 5-4 T-4th MVC
2001 7-2 5-4 4th MVC
2002 1-8 1-8 T-9th MVC
2003 5-4 4-5 T-5th MVC
2004 5-4 5-4 5th MVC
2005 4-5 6-3 5th MVC
2006 7-2 5-4 4th MVC
2007 7-2 7-2 T-2nd MVC
2008 7-2 8-1 2nd MVC
2009 4-5 6-3 T-4th MVC
2010 7-2 6-3 3rd MVC
2011 6-3 6-3 4th MVC
2012 8-1 9-0 1st MVC
2013 6-2 6-2 T-2nd BIG EAST
2014 8-1 8-1 1st BIG EAST
2015 9-0 8-1 1st BIG EAST
2016 9-0 9-0 1st BIG EAST
2017 8-1 8-1 1st BIG EAST
2018 9-0 1-0 so far
Total 142-84 131-87 --
Let's Get It Started
Creighton has started 10-0 in league play for the third time in the last four seasons.
Below is a list of Creighton's best starts in conference play all-time:
Start League Year Final W-L Final Place
18-0 BIG EAST 2016 18-0 1st
11-0 BIG EAST 2015 17-1 1st
10-0 BIG EAST 2018 TBD TBD
6-0 MVC 2007 14-4 T-2nd
TCB
With 5-16 DePaul on tap for this Saturday, it's worth noting that Creighton has won 24 straight matches against teams that enter a match under .500 since a loss at USC on Sept. 3, 2016.
The Bluejays have not lost a match to a conference team with an overall record under .500 prior to the match since Nov. 12, 2011 at Bradley.
Attendance Mark Could Fall
Creighton smashed yet another major home attendance record last weekend.
CU has currently hosted 30,716 fans in nine home contests. That's breaks the previous program record of 29,905 set in 2015 over the course of 18 home contests. Creighton still has a minimum of four home matches left.
Earlier this year Creighton set a program record for the largest home crowd in school history when 14,022 turned out on Sept. 6 to see the Bluejays host Nebraska.
Winters Wins Weekly Award
Jaali Winters was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9th after she averaged 4.50 kills and 2.33 digs per set on .353 hitting to help Creighton to a pair of sweeps. She also became Creighton's all-time kills leader during the week prior.
Winters opened with 11 kills, nine digs and two blocks in a 3-0 win over Seton Hall. Six of her kills and four of her digs came in the first set to help set the tone against a Pirates team that would not lead in the final two frames.
On Sunday, Winters had 16 kills and hit a season-best .441 in a 3-0 win versus St. John's. Her kill to give Creighton a 14-10 lead in the second set was the 1,623rd of her career, breaking Leah Ratzlaff's Creighton record that had stood since 2005.
Winters was also targeted 42 times in serve receive without being aced.
Winters has now been named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week twice in her career (also 10/17/17) to go along with her pair of Defensive Player of the Week (10/31/17 and 9/11/18) laurels. She remains the only player in league history to be honored with both awards at any point in a career.
Creighton has now had three different women named Offensive Player of the Week (Ballenger, Kloth and Winters) and three women named Defensive Player of the Week (Hickman, Winters, Witt) this fall.
Winters Is Here
Jaali Winters enters this weekend with a school-record 1,689 kills, after setting the mark in the second set on Oct. 7 vs. St. John's.
Not to be forgotten, Winters' All-American teammate on the outside Taryn Kloth has climbed up to seventh on CU's all-time kills list.
Most Career Kills, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Jaali Winters 456 1,689 2015-Pr.
2. Leah Ratzlaff 409 1,622 2002-05
3. Melissa Walsh 394 1,596 1998-01
4. Kelly Goc 394 1,414 2004-07
5. Jessica Houts 451 1,385 2005-09
6. JoDe Cieloha 398 1,375 1994-97
7. Taryn Kloth 424 1,262 2015-Pr.
8. Leah McNary 458 1,257 2011-14
9. Marysa Wilkinson 499 1,183 2014-17
10. Lauren Smith 511 1,160 2013-16
Jaali Scaling The Record Books
Jaali Winters continues to rewrite the record book nearly every time she takes the court.
On Sept. 9 vs. Wichita State, Winters had her 90th career match with 10+ kills, breaking the CU mark of 89 set by Leah Ratzlaff (2002-05).
On Sept. 15 at Illinois, Winters broke Ratzlaff's school record for career attack attempts.
On Oct. 7 at home against St. John's, Winters took down Ratzlaff's mark for career kills.
On Oct. 12 at Georgetown, Winters broke Ratzlaff's record for career points.
Below is a complete list of all 79 school records that are currently owned by Winters:
Category Type Figure
10+ Kills by a freshman Consecutive Matches 19
Kills in a debut Match 17
Points Served To Start Match Match 11
Attack Attempts Match (5-set) 77
Block Solos Match (5-set) 4
Kills at D.J. Sokol Arena Match (3-set) 23
Kills at D.J. Sokol Arena Match (4-set) 23
Kills at D.J. Sokol Arena Match (5-set) 28
Attempts at Sokol Arena Match (5-set) 77
Kills Match (4-set NCAA) 21
Kills Match (5 set NCAA) 24
Attempts Match (4-set NCAA) 63
Attempts Match (5-set NCAA) 66
Points Match (4-set NCAA) 22.0
Points Match (5-set NCAA) 26.0
Kills Match (3-set B.E. Tourn.) 18
Kills Match (5-set B.E. Tourn.) 21
Attempts Match (3-set B.E. Tourn.) 37
Attempts Match (5-set B.E. Tourn.) 77
Aces Match (3-set B.E. Tourn.) 3
Aces Match (5-set B.E. Tourn.) 1
Digs Match (3-set B.E. Tourn.) 14
Block Solos Match (5-set B.E. Tourn.) 1
Points Match (3-set B.E. Tourn.) 19.0
Points Match (5-set B.E. Tourn.) 22.5
Kills by a freshman Season 546 (2015)
Kills Per Set by a freshman Season 4.07 (2015)
20+ Kill matches by a frosh Season 9 (2015)
10+ Kill matches Season 31 (2015)
Kills Season 546 (2015)
Attack Attempts Season 1,428 (2015)
Points Season 595.5 (2015)
Kills at D.J. Sokol Arena Season 249 (2015)
KIlls Per Set at Sokol Season 4.08 (2015)
Attempts at Sokol Arena Season 611 (2015)
Points at Sokol Arena Season 269.5 (2015)
Points Per Set at Sokol Season 4.42 (2015)
Sets Played at Sokol Season 61 (2015)
KIlls Season (NCAA Tourn.) 79 (2016)
Kills Per Set Season (NCAA Tourn.) 4.42 (2015)
Attempts Season (NCAA Tourn.) 218 (2016)
Points Season (NCAA Tourn.) 86.5 (2016)
Points Per Set Season (NCAA Tourn.) 4.81 (2016)
Double-Doubles Season (NCAA Tourn.) 3 (2016)
Kills Season (B.E. Tourn.) 39 (2015)
Kills Per Set Season (B.E. Tourn.) 4.88 (2015)
Attempts Season (B.E. Tourn.) 114 (2015)
Aces Season (B.E. Tourn.) 5 (2016)
Aces Per Set Season (B.E. Tourn.) 0.83 (2016)
Points Season (B.E. Tourn.) 41.5 (2015
Points Per Set Season (B.E. Tourn.) 5.58 (2016)
Double-Doubles Season (B.E. Tourn.) 2 (2017)
Quickest to 200 kills Career 15 matches
Quickest to 300 kills Career 21 matches
Quickest to 400 kills Career 28 matches
Quickest to 500 kills Career 34 matches
Quickest to 600 kills Career 41 matches
10+ Kill matches Career 101
Kills Career 1,689
Attack Attempts Career 4,696
Points Career 1870.5
Kills at D.J. Sokol Arena Career 683
Kills Per Set at Sokol Career 3.86
Attempts at Sokol Arena Career 1,785
Points at Sokol Arena Career 747.5
Points Per Set at Sokol Arena Career 4.22
Kills Career (NCAA Tourn.) 155
Kills Per Set Career (NCAA Tourn.) 4.08
Attempts Career (NCAA Tourn.) 465
Points Career (NCAA Tourn.) 169.5
Points Per Set Career (NCAA Tourn.) 4.46
Wins Played in Career (NCAA Tourn.) 6
Kills Career (B.E. Tourn.) 85
Kills Per Set Career (B.E. Tourn.) 3.86
Aces Career (B.E. Tourn.) 7
Aces Per Set Career (B.E. Tourn.) 0.32
Points Career (B.E. Tourn.) 100.0
Points Per Set Career (B.E. Tourn.) 4.55
Double-Doubles Career (B.E. Tourn.) 4
Onto The Next One
Now the Creighton recordholder in kills, Jaali Winters is continuing her onslaught on the BIG EAST all-time kills list. She's currently 15th all-time, but trails only Xavier's Abbey Bessler since the league's reconfiguration in 2013.
The figures were researched by Matt DeMarinis of WhiteAndBlueReview.com, as the league record book doesn't have such a list.
Big East Volleyball All-Time Kills Leaders
1. 2,145 Lola Arslanbekova, Louisville 2009-12
2. 1,976 Stephanie Niemer, Cincinnati 2007-10
3. 1,852 Karin Palgutova, St. John's 2012-15
1,852 Diana Andreyko, Pittsburgh 2004-07
5. 1,815 Ann Marie Lucanie, Pittsburgh 1990-93
6. 1,801 Marcela Gurgel, South Florida 2006-09
7. 1,774 Abbey Bessler, Xavier 2013-16
8. 1,766 Jackie Ahlers, St. John's 2002-04, 06
9. 1,729 Sarah Katinger, Providence 1998-01
10. 1,723 Jenelle Koester, Connecticut 1995-98
1,723 Stacy Evans, Villanova 1994-97
12. 1,717 Kiran Gill, Georgetown 1997-00
13. 1,698 Lola Opadiran, Rutgers 1996-99
1,698 Dana Fiume, Syracuse 1997-00
15. 1,689 Jaali Winters, Creighton 2015-18
16. 1,683 Christy Peters, Notre Dame 1991-94
17. 1,681 Wendy Hatlestad, Pittsburgh 2000-03
18. 1,668 Becky Kulbago, Villanova 1990-93
19. 1,654 Jordanne Scott, Cincinnati 2009-12
20. 1,645 Simone Kollmann, Georgetown 1990-92
Winters Is Coming, Part 2
Jaali Winters ranks third nationally among active players with 1,689 career kills and second with 4,696 attack attempts. Taylor Louis, who has 1,846 kills and 4,793 attack attempts during her career that started at Marquette and has continued at Iowa, leads both categories.
Winters' Creighton team met Louis' Marquette team three times in 2015 and twice in 2016, with Winters owning more head-to-head kills (92-79) in fewer attack attempts (237-248).
Creighton won all five matches.
Jays On A Roll
Creighton has won 10 straight matches, tied for the sixth-longest streak in program history. A pair of wins this weekend could push that into a tie for third-place.
Dating to last season, Creighton has also won 11 straight league contests. A pair of wins this week could move that into the program's third-longest conference streak ever.
Consecutive Wins (All Matches)
Wins Dates Snapped By
23 Sept. 23-Dec. 9, 2016 at #5 Texas, 3-0
17 Sept. 29-Nov. 30, 2012 at #11 Minnesota, 3-1
12 Sept. 20-Oct. 25, 2015 at Villanova, 3-2
11 Oct. 11-Nov. 21, 2014 Seton Hall, 3-0
11 Oct. 6-Nov. 12, 2017 at Villanova, 3-0
10 Oct. 31-Dec. 5, 2015 vs. #2 USC, 3-1
10 Sept. 21, 2018 - Present ? ? ?
8 Oct. 25-Nov. 22, 2008 vs. Northern Iowa, 3-2
Consecutive Regular-Season League Wins
Wins Dates Snapped By League
28 Oct. 31, 2015-Sept. 30, 2017 at Marquette, 3-0 BIG EAST
14 Sept. 29, 2012 - End of 2012 Never (left MVC) MVC
12 Sept. 20-Oct. 25, 2015 at Villanova, 3-2 BIG EAST
11 Oct. 11-Nov. 21, 2014 Seton Hall, 3-0 BIG EAST
11 Oct. 6-Nov. 12, 2017 at Villanova, 3-0 BIG EAST
11 Nov. 18, 2017-Present ??? BIG EAST
9 Nov. 4, 2005-Sept. 30, 2006 Northern Iowa, 3-2 MVC
9 Nov. 17, 2006-Oct. 6, 2007 at Wichita State, 3-0 MVC
9 Oct. 25, 2008-Sept. 18, 2009 Northern Iowa, 3-1 MVC
Senior CLASS Award Candidates
Creighton's Taryn Kloth and Jaali Winters are among 30 student-athletes who excel both on and off the court that have been selected as candidates for the 2018 Senior CLASS Award® in collegiate volleyball. Kloth and Winters are two of three BIG EAST candidates, and make Creighton one of two teams (Illinois) with multiple candidates.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2018 NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship in December.
Of the 30 candidates, 13 have grade-point averages of 3.5 or higher and 27 have received academic all-conference honors. Fifteen are returning American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) All-Americans, and 10 are members of teams ranked in the AVCA Top 25 Coaches Poll. Outside of academics and athletics, all candidates have been consistently involved in community service on their campus or in their communities.
Seton Hall's Abby Thelen is the only other BIG EAST player on the list of 30 candidates.
Solid Start In Cincinnati
Jaali Winters was at the service line as Creighton scored the first 11 points of a Sept. 29 sweep at Xavier. Winters had three aces and a kill to help contribute to the hot start.
Per the NCAA record book, it was tied for the third-best serving run to start a match in NCAA history. It's also a Creighton record, besting the mark held by Megan Ballenger vs. Seton Hall in 2016, as seen below:
Consecutive Points Served to Start a Match
No. Player: Team vs. Opponent Date
13 Allison Kearney, Arkansas St. vs. Alcorn St. 09/16/11
12 Katie Bova, Valparaiso vs. IUPUI 10/01/05
11 Kristin Carpenter, Penn State vs. Princeton 09/18/10
11 Taylor Barnes, Baylor vs. Louisiana-Monroe 09/01/06
11 Jaali Winters, Creighton at Xavier 09/29/18
10 Megan Carter, Lafayette vs. Providence 10/15/05
10 Megan Ballenger, Creighton vs. Seton Hall 10/16/16
Kloth Earned Player of the Week Honor
Creighton senior Taryn Kloth was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 25.
Though Kloth was named First Team All-Conference in 2016, and Second Team All-Conference and BIG EAST Championship Most Valuable Player in 2017, it's the first time in her career the Sioux Falls, S.D., native has been named a Player of the Week by the BIG EAST.
Kloth averaged 5.08 points, 4.50 kills, 1.17 digs, 0.50 blocks and 0.33 aces per set on .440 hitting as No. 10 Creighton won all six sets it played to open BIG EAST play.
The outside hitter had 11 kills, four digs and an ace on .409 hitting as Creighton swept DePaul to open league play. She then had 16 kills, three digs and two blocks on .464 hitting in a sweep over No. 21 Marquette, the preseason league favorite. Kloth had eight kills in the opening set, a 25-17 triumph, that set the tone in the victory.
Kloth is now averaging 4.86 kills per set on .310 hitting in five matches against top-25 competition this fall.
Sweeeeeeeeeep!!!
Creighton has swept 7-of-10 matches at all sites in BIG EAST play this season, and swept eight of its last nine home matches against league foes dating to last fall.
During Creighton's 33-match home winning streak in league play, the Bluejays have dropped only 14 (of 113) sets at home, with nine of those setbacks coming in set two.
Creighton is 30-3 in set one, 24-9 in set two, 32-1 in set three, 9-1 in set four and 4-0 in set five during that home streak, which means they are 66-4 in sets that they spend at least some time on the south bench.
In Creighton's 98 all-time regular-season BIG EAST matches at all sites, Creighton is 52-4 in three-set matches, 26-2 in four-set matches and 11-3 in five-set contests.
Something To Shoot For
Creighton's current senior class has never lost to a BIG EAST team at D.J. Sokol Arena, going a perfect 35-0 in that span. The Bluejays were 11-0 (including two BIG EAST Tournament wins) in 2015, 10-0 in 2016, 8-0 last fall and 6-0 to date this fall.
Creighton has not lost a home match to a BIG EAST team since Seton Hall upset the Bluejays on Nov. 23, 2014.
Home Sweet Home
Creighton has gone unbeaten at home in league play in four of its previous six seasons (2012, 2015, 2016, 2017), and is off to a 6-0 start in conference home matches this fall.
Creighton is 48-2 all-time (.960) in regular-season BIG EAST play at D.J. Sokol Arena, falling once each to St. John's (2013) and Seton Hall (2014).
Since D.J. Sokol Arena opened in 2009, Creighton is 79-7 (.919) all-time in regular-season conference matches in the facility, including 33 straight victories.
Creighton has won all 10 meetings with St. John's since that 2013 upset, and all nine encounters versus Seton Hall since dropping the home match in 2014.
The Bluejays have had a winning record in conference home matches each of the last 13 seasons (including 2018). That streak that dates back to its days at the Omaha Civic Auditorium, a site that was torn down two years ago and no longer exists.
Creighton has not lost an October home match since October 15, 2011 against Northern Iowa, having won its last 29 such matches.
Against The BIG EAST
Since the BIG EAST was restructured in 2013, Creighton owns a winning record against each of the other teams currently in the BIG EAST.
The Bluejays enter this weekend with 98 wins against BIG EAST competition (including BIG EAST Championship play) since 2013, 17 more wins than Marquette for most in the league.
Seton Hall and Marquette are the only league foes to top the Bluejays three times since 2013.
Opponent Reg. Season BE Tourney Total
Butler 11-1 - 11-1
DePaul 11-0 - 11-0
Georgetown 11-0 - 11-0
Marquette 9-2 2-1 11-3
Providence 8-0 - 8-0
Seton Hall 8-3 2-0 10-3
St. John's 10-1 - 10-1
Villanova 9-2 2-0 11-2
Xavier 12-0 3-0 15-0
Total 89-9 9-1 98-10
Third Set's A Charm
One key factor to watch this weekend is the result of the third set.
Creighton is 16-0 this season when winning the third set, but 2-4 when dropping the third set.
Since a Oct. 10, 2014 loss at Seton Hall, Creighton is a perfect 72-0 against BIG EAST teams (66-0 in the regular-season and 6-0 in league tournament play) when winning the third set.
Marquette is 19-0 when winning the third set, but 0-4 when losing the third set this season.
DePaul is 3-15 when winning the third set, but 2-1 when losing the third set this season.
Set 1 Result A Strong Indicator
Creighton is 277-30 (.902) overall under Kirsten Bernthal Booth when it wins set one. In that same time span, CU is just 58-134 (.302) under Booth when it drops the first set.
Per RichKern.com, Division I teams that lost the first set in 2017 won just 20.8 percent of their matches last season.
Since Aug. 29, 2010, Creighton has gone 85-2 in its last 87 home matches when taking a 1-0 lead, losing only on Sept. 12, 2015 to Pacific and on Sept. 6, 2018 to No. 7 Nebraska.
Last year's team was 22-0 when winning the first set and 4-7 when dropping the first set.
This year's team is 14-2 when winning the first set and 4-2 when dropping the opener.
Creighton has won 55 straight matches against unranked foes when winning the opening set.
Top 10 Jays
Creighton Volleyball remained a season-best 10th in this week's AVCA poll. It's the 11th different time in program history that the Bluejays have spent in the top-10.
Here's a look at Creighton's all-time top-10 rankings in the AVCA poll:
Rank Week W-L That Week
9 8/9/17 3-0
7 8/28/17 2-1
9 9/4/17 2-1
8 9/11/17 0-2
10 9/10/18 2-1
10 9/17/18 2-0
10 9/24/18 2-0
10 10/1/18 2-0
10 10/8/18 2-0
10 10/15/18 2-0
10 10/22/18 TBD
Top 25 Jays
Creighton started the 2018 campaign ranked 13th and are currently 10th.
This means the Bluejays are in the top 25 of the AVCA poll for the 32nd straight week. That streak started on Oct. 31, 2016. Nationally, that's the 12th-longest active streak, as seen below:
Consecutive Active Weeks in AVCA Top 25
Streak Team Current Rank
536 Stanford 2
536 Nebraska 9
453 Penn State 4
426 Florida 13
250 Washington 21
230 Texas 8
85 Wisconsin 7
84 BYU 1
72 UCLA 20
55 Minnesota 3
36 Kentucky 14
32 Creighton 10
Jays Get New Court
After playing on the same sport court tiled surface since the opening of D.J. Sokol Arena, Creighton Volleyball introduced a new Taraflex® Sports Flooring surface at D.J. Sokol Arena for its match on Sept. 21 vs. DePaul.
Taraflex® floors have been used for the last 11 Summer Olympics, and provides better shock absorption and comfort while preventing both short and long-term injuries, preventing skin burns and providing for optimal levels of sliding while also allowing for easier maintenance.
The new court was paid for by private donations.
BIG EAST Preseason Poll
For the first time since Creighton's 2012 season in the Missouri Valley Conference, the Bluejays were not picked to win their league. This year a preseason poll of BIG EAST coaches tabbed Marquette with 78 points and six first-place votes, edging out Creighton's 76 points and four first-place votes. Butler was picked third in the league's preseason poll, with Villanova fourth. Creighton also had three women named to the 12 member on the BIG EAST's preseason all-conference team, as Taryn Kloth, Jaali Winters and Brittany Witt were all honored. It was the second straight preseason honor for Kloth and Witt, and third in a row for Winters.
Creighton has finished in the spot predicted of them or better in the preseason poll in 13 of the past 15 years, including eight years where it's finished exactly where it was predicted.
Year Preseason Pick Finish Move
1994 11th 9th #2
1995 9th 7th #2
1996 9th 6th #3
1997 8th 3rd #5
1998 6th 8th i2
1999 T-7th 5th #2
2000 4th T-4th - -
2001 2nd 4th i2
2002 7th 9th i2
2003 9th T-5th #4
2004 5th 5th - -
2005 5th 5th - -
2006 4th 4th - -
2007 3rd T-2nd #1
2008 3rd 2nd #1
2009 4th T-4th - -
2010 4th 3rd #1
2011 3rd 4th i1
2012 4th 1st #3
2013 1st T-2nd i1
2014 1st 1st - -
2015 1st 1st - -
2016 1st 1st - -
2017 1st 1st - -
2018 2nd ?? ??
New Time For November 11th
The Creighton University Athletics Department has moved the start time for its Nov. 11 volleyball home match against Villanova from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
The start time was moved to avoid a conflict with a nationally-televised Creighton men's basketball home game vs. East Tennessee State that same day that begins at 12:30 p.m. Contact was made with the Villanova Athletic Department, who agreed to accommodate the request.
The men's basketball game will still take place at CHI Health Center Omaha, while the volleyball match remains at D.J. Sokol Arena.
Any Venue Will Do
Since joining the BIG EAST, Creighton has a .500 record or better (in all matches) at every venue in which it has played a BIG EAST match.
Site Creighton W-L
D.J. Sokol Arena (CU) 69-12
Hinkle Fieldhouse (BU) 7-1
Al McGuire Center (MU) 7-2
Cintas Center (XU) 6-0
Carnesecca Arena (SJU) 5-0
McGrath-Phillips Arena (DPU) 5-0
McDonough Arena (GU) 6-0
Alumni Hall (PC) 4-0
Jake Nevin Field House (VU) 4-2
Walsh Gym (SHU) 3-2
Winters Earns Defensive Award
Senior Jaali Winters was named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 11th in recognition of her 4.54 digs and 3.92 kills per set.
Winters had a double-double in all three matches, starting with 18 kills and 18 digs against No. 7 Nebraska on Sept. 6.
She then lifted a career-high 26 digs to go with 15 kills in a win over Iowa State one night later. Winters' 26 digs vs. Iowa State were the most by a Bluejay outside hitter in one match since October 23, 2009 (Allie Oelke), and were the most by any Creighton player in a four-set match since Oct. 4, 2014 (Kate Elman).
The Ankeny, Iowa, native closed out her week with 18 kills and 15 digs in a victory over Wichita State.
Winters was named MVP of the Bluejay Invitational for her efforts.
This was the second time in her career she's been named Defensive Player of the Week by the BIG EAST (also Oct. 31, 2017), but that's hardly her only league honor. Winters has also been named the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week once, was a six-time BIG EAST Freshman of the Week in 2015, is a three-time First Team All-BIG EAST selection, the 2015 BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, the 2016 BIG EAST Tournament MVP and a three-time BIG EAST All-Academic Team honoree.
Double Trouble
Jaali Winters owns 12 double-doubles this season, including one in all five matches this season against top-25 opponents. Winters owns 54 double-doubles in her career. That ranks sixth-most in program history, and the most by any outside hitter.
Matches With a Double-Double, Career
D-D Name Years Primary Position
65 Melissa Weisensee 1994-97 Setter
64 Kailey Reyes 1998-01 Setter
60 Melissa Walsh 1998-01 Middle Blocker
57 Megan Bober 2009-12 Setter
56 Korie Lebeda 2005-08 Setter
54 Jaali Winters 2015-Pres. Outside Hitter
41 Allie Oelke 2007-10 Outside Hitter
Winters Part Of 1,000 & 1,000 Club
Jaali Winters enters this week with 1,689 career kills and 1,276 career digs. Last year she became the third player in CU history with 1,000 career kills and 1,000 career digs, and first to get there as a junior.
Melissa Walsh (1,596 kills; 1,240 digs) and Allie Oelke (1,126 kills; 1,382 digs) previously accomplished the feat.
Winters ranks third in the BIG EAST with 297 kills and 10th with 251 digs, making her the league's only player with more than 245 kills and digs. The nine players ahead of her in digs are all liberos who have combined for 11 kills all fall, while Winters averages 3.71 kills per set.
Can You Dig It?
Junior Brittany Witt and senior Jaali Winters have climbed into the top 10 in Creighton history on the all-time digs chart. Witt is up to fourth, while Winters is fifth.
Most Career Digs, Creighton History
Name Sets No. Years
1. Kate Elman 464 2,054 2012-15
2. Janeen Piller 336 1,392 2001-04
3. Allie Oelke 445 1,382 2007-10
4. Brittany Witt 326 1,376 2016-Pr.
5. Jaali Winters 456 1,276 2015-Pr.
6. Kailey Reyes 368 1,258 1998-01
7. Melissa Walsh 394 1,240 1998-01
8. Julianne Mandolfo 241 1,224 2010-11
9. Melissa Weisensee 411 1,223 1994-97
10. Melanie Jereb 471 1,218 2012-15
Quick Witt-ed
Brittany Witt started her junior season with 10 straight matches in each of her first 18 matches, and a streak of 21 in a row dating to last year, before "just" nine digs at Georgetown on Oct. 12.
The streak of 18 straight matches with 10+ digs to open a season was the fourth-longest in program history
Witt's streak of 21 straight double-figure matches in a row was the longest streak of her career, and was the sixth-longest in CU history.
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs, To Start Year
32 Kate Elman 2012
29 Janeen Piller (every match) 2004
27 Bianca Rivera 2007
18 Brittany Witt 2018
9 Nayka Benitez 2010
Consecutive Matches, 10 or More Digs
43 Janeen Piller, Oct. 10, 2003-Nov. 26, 2004
32 Kate Elman, Aug. 24 - Nov. 30, 2012
30 Kate Elman, Sept. 30, 2013 - Sept. 12, 2014
27 Bianca Rivera, Aug. 24-Nov. 9, 2007
23 Julianne Mandolfo, Sept. 9-Nov. 24, 2011
21 Brittany Witt, Nov. 25, 2017 - Oct. 7, 2018
19 Bianca Rivera, Sept. 20-Nov. 28, 2008
Ranked Pair
August 24th marked just the second time that Creighton Soccer and Creighton Volleyball both beat ranked teams on the same day, as the volleyball team topped No. 5 Kentucky (3-2) just hours before the men's soccer team defeated No. 11 Clemson (2-0).
The only previous day with both teams taking down top-25 foes had been Aug. 30, 2013, when the volleyball team opened its season with a 3-1 win over No. 13 BYU and the men's soccer team followed with a 2-0 triumph over No. 14 Tulsa.
This year has been the first time both teams have been ranked in the top-10 at the same time.
Record Crowd
Creighton set an NCAA regular-season record for a volleyball-only crowd on Sept. 6 when it hosted 14,022 fans for its home match against No. 7 Nebraska.
The total eclipsed the previous NCAA mark of 13,870 that Nebraska hosted in 2009 for a match against UCLA, and also topped the previous record for a Creighton home match of 13,081 set in 2007 when the Bluejays entertained Cal Poly.
In five all-time volleyball matches at CHI Health Center Omaha, Creighton has played before an average of 11,477 fans.
Below is a list of the largest crowds (and home crowds) in Creighton and NCAA Volleyball history:
Largest Home Crowds
Att. Opponent Date CU W-L Facility
14,022 #7 Nebraska 09/06/18 L 2-3 CHI Health Ctr.
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 L 1-3 CHI Health Ctr.
10,131 #4 Nebraska 09/15/15 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
8,037 #2 Nebraska 10/05/08 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
2,578 #13 Kentucky 09/01/17 W 3-0 Sokol Arena
Largest Crowds (All Sites)
Att. Opponent Date CU Result Facility
14,022 #7 Nebraska 09/06/18 L 2-3 CHI Health Ctr.
13,081 #18 Cal Poly 09/02/07 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
12,112 #1 Nebraska 09/24/06 L 1-3 CHI Health Ctr.
10,131 #4 Nebraska 09/15/15 L 0-3 CHI Health Ctr.
8,627 at #5 Nebraska 09/29/02 L 0-3 Devaney Ctr.
8,277 vs. Montana St. 09/16/16 W 3-0 Devaney Ctr.
Largest Crowds
NCAA Volleyball-Only Regular-Season History
Att. Match Date Site
14,022 Nebraska at Creighton 09/06/18 Omaha, Neb.
13,870 UCLA at Nebraska 09/13/09 Lincoln, Neb.
13,412 LSU at Nebraska 09/12/08 Lincoln, eb.
13,396 Hawaii at Nebraska 10/21/07 Lincoln, Neb.
13,081 2 matches (CP@CU; PSU-NU) 09/02/07 Omaha, Neb.
More Attendance Notes
How many fans is 14,022? Consider these facts...
- In the five seasons (1998-02) before Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival in 2003, the Bluejays attracted a total of 13,670 fans in 51 home matches, an average of 268 fans per match.
- Last year Creighton's nine BIG EAST peers attracted a grand total of 51,433 fans in 122 home dates, an average of 422 fans per match. Multiply 422 by 33 and you still don't get to 14,022.
- Since Creighton joined the BIG EAST in 2013, no league peer has attracted as many as 10,000 fans in any season, nor averaged more than 845 fans per home match for a full season.
- Through matches of October 20, the other nine schools in the BIG EAST had attracted a total of 31,481 fans in 85 home dates (370 per match).
Last year Creighton led the BIG EAST in average home attendance in volleyball, men's soccer, women's soccer, baseball and men's basketball.
Here's a look at the national leaders in average home attendance, after matches of October 21:
Rank Average School
1. Nebraska 8,147
2. Wisconsin 7,052
3. Minnesota 5,284
4. Hawai'i 5,219
5. Texas 3,893
6. Penn State 3,429
7. Creighton 3,413
8. Florida 2,829
9. BYU 2,695
10. Colorado State 2,655
Year-By-Year In Non-Conference Play
Creighton collected eight non-conference wins for the first time since the 2013 team went 9-3.
Creighton Volleyball went 3-3 against ranked non-conference teams last season. Before last fall, CU had been 2-43 all-time vs. ranked teams in regular-season non-conference matches.
This year's club is 8-4 in non-conference play, and 1-3 against ranked teams in the non-con.
Non-Conference Records, By Year, Under Booth
Year Non-Con W-L vs. Ranked Non-Con Final W-L
2003 3-8 0-0 12-18
2004 8-2 0-1 18-11
2005 6-5 0-3 16-14
2006 8-3 0-1 21-10
2007 6-5 0-3 21-10
2008 3-5 0-3 18-9
2009 3-8 0-3 14-17
2010 5-5 0-1 21-12
2011 5-7 0-1 17-14
2012 9-2 0-1 29-4
2013 9-3 1-2 23-9
2014 7-6 0-5 25-9
2015 6-7 1-4 27-9
2016 6-6 0-4 29-7
2017 7-4 3-3 26-7
2018 8-4 1-3 TBD
How Many MVP's Can They Have?
Creighton has won seven different tournaments since the start of the 2016 season, and had five different MVP's honored.
Three members of this year's team (Jaali Winters, Taryn Kloth and Megan Ballenger) have won at least one tourney MVP in their careers.
Year Event MVP
2016 BIG EAST Championship Jaali Winters
2017 Husky Invitational Marysa Wilkinson
2017 Bluejay Invitational Lydia Dimke
2017 Kansas Invitational Jaali Winters
2017 BIG EAST Championship Taryn Kloth
2018 SMU DoubleTree Classic Megan Ballenger
2018 Bluejay Invitational Jaali Winters
1,000 Kill Duo
Creighton owns a pair of outside hitters with over 1,000 career kills.
Jaali Winters reached 1,000 in last year's opening match vs. Saint Mary's in her 73rd career match. Taryn Kloth reached the milestone in her 104th career match, doing so against this season North Carolina State on August 31st.
Creighton's Quickest Players To 1,000 Kills (Career)
Name MP Date Opponent
Melissa Walsh 70 10/15/00 Eastern Illinois
Jaali Winters 73 08/25/17 vs. Saint Mary's
Leah Ratzlaff 76 10/22/04 Missouri State
JoDe Cieloha 83 09/13/97 at Drake
Kelly Goc 87 11/24/06 vs. Northern Iowa
Jessica Houts 90 11/08/08 Illinois State
Leah McNary 96 09/12/14 Pepperdine
Amanda Cvejdlik 99 11/15/08 at Evansville
Shelly Kapler 103 11/18/99 vs. Missouri St.
Taryn Kloth 104 08/31/18 vs. NC State
Allie Oelke 107 10/09/10 Wichita State
Kelli Browning 110 10/26/14 DePaul
Lauren Smith 119 10/07/16 at Villanova
Marysa Wilkinson 120 09/30/17 at St. John's
15 Not Enough For These Jays
Normally when a fifth set is contested, a team must reach 15 points (and win by two) to earn a victory.
In both of CU's five-setters on the opening weekend at the Trojan Invitational, that still wasn't enough to decide a victor.
Creighton lost to No. 10 USC by an 18-16 count in the fifth set on Aug. 25.
One day earlier, Creighton saved two match points and eventually converted its sixth match point opportunity to take a 22-20 decision vs. No. 5 Kentucky.
The 22-20 score was the highest-scoring fifth set in program history, eclipsing a 20-18 win in 2016 at No. 4 Kansas and a 20-18 loss to Iowa in St. Louis in 2010.
All Night Long
Creighton played the longest match (by time) in program history on Aug. 25 against No. 10 USC, as its match against the Women of Troy lasted 3:04. That match was so long that it exceeded the length of the Los Angeles Rams preseason game (3:02) against the Houston Texans that was played just blocks away earlier in the day.
The previous longest matches had been 2:45, done twice in the fall of 2000.
Creighton's Longest Matches (By Length)
Time Opponent, Date Result
3:04 at #10 USC, 8/25/18 USC 3-2
2:45 at Indiana State, 10/14/00 CU 3-2
2:45 at Evansville, 11/4/00 CU 3-2
2:42 at USC, 9/3/16 USC 3-2
BIG EAST Honors Ballenger and Hickman
Megan Ballenger was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week and Naomi Hickman honored as BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week on September 4th.
Ballenger earned MVP honors at the SMU DoubleTree Classic after helping Creighton to three 3-0 sweeps. She averaged 3.89 points, 3.44 kills and 0.78 blocks per set while hitting .529.
Hickman averaged 1.78 blocks per set to help Creighton win all nine sets it played. She opened the tournament by tying her career-high with six blocks against Arkansas State, then broke that mark hours later with seven blocks against North Carolina State.
This was Hickman's first career Player of the Week honor from the BIG EAST. Ballenger was previously recognized as BIG EAST Freshman of the Week three times in 2016.
Service Improves
Creighton had 23 service errors in its season-opening victory over No. 5 Kentucky, including nine errors in 20 attempts in the first set of the season.
Creighton has minimized such mistakes since then, with a total of just 136 service errors in the past 21 contests.
Below is a list of the most service errors in a match in program history:
Most Team Service Errors in a match, Creighton history
SE Opponent Date Aces Result
25 at Wichita State 9/24/04 5 L 3-1
23 vs. #5 Kentucky 8/24/18 5 W 3-2
21 San Francisco 8/27/10 1 W 3-1
20 Drake 10/10/98 9 L 3-2
18 at Evansville 9/12/98 5 L 0-3
18 Drake 10/8/04 5 W 3-1
18 vs. Miami (Ohio) 8/28/15 7 W 3-2
Special K
Taryn Kloth had a (then) career-high 25 kills in the Aug. 25 match at No. 10 USC. It was two more than her previous best, which was set in 2016 at USC the last time she faced the Women of Troy in the Galen Center.
Kloth eclipsed that with a career-best 26 kills versus No. 7 Nebraska on Sept. 6, and one night later added 23 putaways vs. Iowa State in just four sets. When Kloth had 26 kills on .400 hitting vs. Nebraska, she became the first Creighton player with 26+ kills to hit .400 or better since Kelly Goc hit .625 with 26 kills on Nov. 16, 2007 vs. Drake.
Kloth also had 26 kills on Sept. 28 in a win at Butler.
Kloth now owns seven career matches of 20+ kills, including five this fall, as seen below:
Taryn Kloth -- Most Kills in a Match
Kills Opponent Date
26 #7 Nebraska 9/6/18
26 at Butler 9/28/18
25 at #10 USC 8/25/18
23 at USC 9/3/16
23 Iowa State 9/7/18
23 at #8 Illinois 9/15/18
20 at Villanova 10/7/16
25 Kill Duo
Senior All-American outside hitters Jaali Winters and Taryn Kloth each had a match of 25 kills on the opening weekend of the season.
Winters had 25 kills against No. 5 Kentucky on Aug. 24, and one day later Kloth had 25 kills at No. 10 USC.
In all of last season, Winters (with 28 at Butler) was the only Bluejay performer with 20+ kills in any match last season.
This year marks the first time since 2000 that multiple Creighton players have had a match with 25 or more kills. In 2000, Melissa Walsh had three matches while Melanie Keolanui did it once. It also happened in 1998 with Walsh (twice) and Shelly Kapler (once).
CU has never had multiple players with mulitple 25 kills in a match in the same season, which could happen if Winters does it one more time this fall. If Kloth can compile 25 kills in another match this year, she'll become the first Bluejay with four matches of 25+ kills in the same season.
Below is a list of Creighton players with the most career matches of 20 or more kills, as well as 25 or more kills.
Most Matches With 20+ Kills, Creighton Career
20+K Name Years
23 Melissa Walsh 1998-01
20 Leah Ratzlaff 2002-05
17 Jaali Winters 2015-Pres.
13 Kelly Goc 2004-07
10 JoDe Cieloha 1994-97
7 Taryn Kloth 2015-Pres.
5 Jessica Houts 2005-09
5 Leah McNary 2011-14
Most Matches With 25+ Kills, Creighton Career
25+K Name Years
8 Melissa Walsh 1998-01
6 Leah Ratzlaff 2002-05
5 Jaali Winters 2015-Pres.
3 Taryn Kloth 2015-Pres.
2 Jessica Houts 2005-09
1 Michelle Prorock 1994-96
1 JoDe Cieloha 1994-97
1 Shelly Kapler 1996-99
1 Melanie Keolanui 1997-00
1 Kelly Goc 2004-07
1 Alicia Runge 2009-10
Four For Four For Number Five
Jaali Winters has started each of the last four season openers, becoming the 15th player in school history to start the initial match of the season four times. Below is that list:
Four Opening Day Starts
Name Years
JoDe Cieloha 1994-97
Melissa Weisensee 1994-97
Shelly Kapler 1996-99
Erin Swanson 1998-01
Kailey Reyes 1998-01
Melissa Walsh 1998-01
Carolyn Decker 2004-06, 08
Korie Lebeda 2005-08
Jessica Houts 2006-09
Allie Oelke 2007-10
Heather Thorson 2009-12
Megan Bober 2009-12
Jess Bird 2013-16
Lauren Smith 2013-16
Jaali Winters 2015-18
Survival of the Fittest
Creighton has won nine matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth after surviving an opponent's match point, including this year's season-opening win over No. 5 Kentucky. Three of those comeback wins have come against Wichita State.
On the other hand, Creighton is 335-2 under Booth when it reaches a math point opportunity, falling only when it wasted two match points on Sept. 4, 2010 to Iowa and two other match points on Nov. 1, 2013 in a loss to St. John's.
Surviving Match Points, Under Booth
Date Opponent MP(s) Faced Final Set 5
08/30/03 vs. McNeese State 13-14, 15-16 18-16
10/10/03 Wichita State 13-14 16-14
10/13/06 at Wichita State 12-14, 13-14, 14-15 17-15
09/11/07 at Drake 13-14, 14-15 17-15
08/26/11 vs. UTSA 12-14, 13-14 16-14
11/16/12 at Wichita State 13-14 16-14
09/20/15 Kansas State 23-24 (4th set) 15-13
11/20/15 at Georgetown 23-24, 26-27 (4th set) 15-7
08/24/18 vs. #5 Kentucky 16-15, 19-18 22-20
Top 10 Recruiting Class
Creighton's freshman quartet of Keeley Davis, Annika Welty, Jaela Zimmerman and Kari Zumach were named the nation's No. 10 recruiting class by PrepVolleyball.com. That's the highest-ranked class in program history.
The same organization ranked Davis as the nation's No. 42 recruit, with Zimmerman 49th.
Creighton has had just two top-50 recruits previously (No. 18 Taryn Kloth in 2015, No. 41 Jaali Winters in 2015) while No. 50 (in 2014) Lydia Dimke went to Purdue for two years before transferring to Creighton.
Top-100 PrepVolleyball.com Senior Aces at CU
Rank Year Player
68 2004 Carolyn Decker
55 2008 Laurel Sanford
60 2011 Michelle Sicner
73 2013 Jess Bird
50 2014 Lydia Dimke*
18 2015 Taryn Kloth
41 2015 Jaali Winters
98 2017 Naomi Hickman
99 2017 Steph Gaston
42 2018 Keeley Davis
49 2018 Jaela Zimmerman
* signed with Purdue and later transferred to Creighton
PrepVolleyball.com Recruiting Class Rankings
Year Rank Freshman Recruits
2004 Best of the Rest (Baumann, Decker, Goc, Lahm, Mehal)
2005 Honorable-Mention (Cvejdlik, Houts, Lebeda)
2006 None (Bloemke, Schulze, Workman)
2007 None (Feldman, Oelke, Vrbicky)
2008 Highest Honorable-Mention (Almgren, Bober, Sanford)
2009 Highest Honorable-Mention (Boggs, Greisch, Moon, Templeton, Thorson)
2010 High Honorable-Mention (Fliss, Hackbarth, Malm, Mandolfo, S. Smith)
2011 Highest Honorable-Mention (Browning, McNary, Neisler, Sicner, Stivers)
2012 High Honorable-Mention (Elman, Jansen, Jereb, L. Smith)
2013 None (Bird, Crawford, Foje)
2014 Highest Honorable-Mention (Lawrence, Tupper, Wilkinson)
2015 11th (Ballenger, Bohnet, Kloth, O'Connell, Winters)
2016 High Honorable-Mention (Conlon, Taylor, Witt)
2017 25th (Gaston, Hickman, Roumeliotis)
2018 10th (Davis, Welty, Zimmerman, Zumach)
The Gauntlet
Creighton played five different non-conference teams that were in the top-25 of the preseason AVCA coaches poll. That's tied for the most in the nation, with Northern Iowa, Texas, USC and Wichita State.
The Bluejays meet up with No. 2 Nebraska, No. 5 Kentucky, No. 10 USC, No. 12 Illinois and No. 21 Iowa State in 2018.
This is the sixth straight season that Creighton will face four or more non-conference foes that are in the preseason Top 25.
Of Creighton's 12 non-conference matches this year, all but one (Lipscomb) were against a team that played in the postseason last fall.
European Summer Tour
Creighton got a head start on the 2018 season with an 11-day trip to Europe in mid-June.
The team played five matches while spending time in Italy, Slovenia, Hungary, Austria and the Czech Republic.
All 15 members of the 2018 team were allowed to participate, including the seven newcomers.
Ranked To Start The Year
Creighton started the season ranked No. 13 in the AVCA Coaches poll. It's the fifth time in the past six campaigns that CU's been ranked in the preseason AVCA poll, and third straight fall.
Being ranked in the preseason poll is no guarantee of future success, however. In the previous 10 seasons, only 178-of-250 teams (71.2 percent) would be in both the preseason and postseason AVCA Top 25 polls.
Since 2008, all but 25 teams (of 250) named in the preseason AVCA Top 25 poll would go on to reach the NCAA Tournament (90.0 percent).
Creighton's History in the AVCA Preseason Poll
Year Preseason Rank Final W-L Final Rank
2013 25th 23-9 NR
2014 23rd 25-9 NR
2016 18th 27-9 9th
2017 9th 26-7 16th
2018 13th TBD ???
Setting The Table
For the sixth time in seven years, Creighton had a different opening day setter.
The Jays started the season with Megan Bober in 2012 vs. UCF before Michelle Sicner took over in the 2013 lid-lifter vs. BYU. In 2014 Maggie Baumert started the opener at setter against Lipscomb, while Kenzie Crawford got the call versus Miami (Ohio) in 2015. Lydia Dimke started the initial contest in both 2016 and 2017, but she has graduated.
This year Madelyn Cole started the season-opener against No. 5 Kentucky, producing a double-double in the five-set victory.
The revolving door at setter hasn't hurt the team in that time, as each of the previous six seasons ended in the NCAA Tournament, and five of them saw Creighton win conference titles. Creighton also won six of those seven season-opening matches.
Select Company
The BIG EAST's Creighton and Marquette are two of 19 teams nationally to have appeared in each of the last six NCAA Tournaments. That group features BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, Marquette, Michigan State, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, San Diego, Stanford, Texas, USC and Washington.
Creighton is one of 15 teams to win a match in each of the last three NCAA Tournaments. That group includes BYU, Creighton, Florida, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Purdue, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, USC, Washington and Wisconsin.
Creighton is also one of 17 schools with six straight seasons of 20+ wins (2012-17). That list features American, BYU, Colorado State, Creighton, Florida, Florida State, Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky, Marquette, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington, Western Kentucky and Wichita State.
Creighton is also one of just nine schools nationally who have won 23 matches or more in each of the previous six seasons (2012-17). That group consists of BYU, Creighton, Florida, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Washington and Western Kentucky.
Creighton is also one of 11 teams to be in the year-end AVCA poll in 2015, 2016 and 2017. That list includes BYU, Creighton, Florida, Minnesota, Nebraska, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, UCLA, Washington and Wisconsin.
2-0 Better Than 0-2
Creighton is 277-10 (.965) all-time when leading a match 2-0, including a 220-4 mark (.982) under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. CU is 147-2 when up 2-0 dating to September of 2009.
Per RichKern.com, Division I teams that won the first two sets in 2017 won 97.0 percent of their matches last season.
Conversely, the Jays are 14-193 (.068) all-time when trailing a match 0-2. Those 14 comebacks in program history from down 0-2 are listed below.
Date Opponent Sets 3-5 scores Coach
09/19/97 at Bradley 15-11, 15-13, 15-8 Wallace
10/01/99 at Drake 15-6, 17-15, 15-11 Wallace
09/03/04 vs. Montana 30-20, 30-21, 15-11 Booth
10/15/04 at Bradley 30-22, 30-23, 15-11 Booth
10/15/05 at So. Illinois 30-25, 30-24, 15-8 Booth
09/21/07 at No. Iowa 31-29, 30-26, 15-12 Booth
11/16/12 at Wichita St. 25-16, 25-20, 16-14 Booth
09/05/14 vs. No. Iowa 25-16, 25-22, 15-5 Booth
11/08/14 at Butler 25-16, 25-20, 15-13 Booth
09/20/15 Kansas State 25-23, 26-24, 15-13 Booth
10/09/15 DePaul 25-21, 25-12, 15-11 Booth
11/20/15 at Georgetown 30-28, 26-24, 15-7 Booth
10/13/17 Butler 25-21, 25-23, 15-9 Booth
10/18/18 Xavier 25-17, 25-17, 15-13 Booth
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Taryn Kloth gained valuable experience this summer with the US Collegiate National Team, spending 11 days in China in late May.
It's the second straight season that Kloth has been part of USA Volleyball, as in 2017 she was part of USA Volleyball's team that went to Minneapolis, Minn.
Among Kloth's USA Volleyball teammates from 2018 that Creighton will face this season include Madison Lilley (Kentucky), Carlyle Nusbaum (Lipscomb) and Jenna Rosenthal (Marquette). CU is currently 1-0 against Kentucky, Lipscomb and Marquette this fall.
Taking The Fifth
Creighton is 55-29 in five-set matches under Kirsten Bernthal Booth. That's impressive since Creighton had never finished a season with a winning record in fifth sets prior to Booth's arrival.
Creighton has won 13 of its last 17 true road matches to go five sets, including wins in 2012 over league rivals Northern Iowa, Wichita State and Missouri State, wins in 2013 at Denver and at Wichita State, wins in 2014 at Butler and at St. John's, a win at Georgetown in 2015, an NCAA Tournament win at No. 4 Kansas in 2016, 2017 victories at Butler, Georgetown and Marquette and a 2018 win at Butler.
It's also worth noting that Creighton is 12-3 all-time in five-set home matches at D.J. Sokol Arena.
Below is a list of Creighton's record in five-set matches on a yearly basis:
Year Set 5 W-L Total W-L
1994 0-2 5-20
1995 0-2 11-19
1996 2-6 9-19
1997 3-5 15-13
1998 2-3 7-18
1999 3-3 13-15
2000 3-3 16-12
2001 1-1 14-13
2002 1-3 3-23
2003 5-1 12-18
2004 4-0 18-11
2005 3-1 16-14
2006 4-2 21-10
2007 2-0 21-10
2008 2-3 18-9
2009 1-4 14-17
2010 3-3 21-12
2011 5-2 17-14
2012 4-1 29-4
2013 3-2 23-9
2014 3-2 25-9
2015 5-2 27-9
2016 4-3 29-7
2017 4-1 26-7
2018 3-2 18-4
Total 70-57 428-316
Marian Pipeline
This is the 16th straight season that Creighton Volleyball had at least one product of Omaha Marian High School on the roster, as senior Kelsey O'Connell and junior Brittany Witt return.
Each of the last seven years, Creighton's year-end leader in digs has been a player that attended Marian.
Interestingly, the Bluejays had never had a volleyball player from Marian between 1994-2002. Here's a look at Creighton's pipeline of players from Marian.
2018: Kelsey O'Connell, Brittany Witt
2017: Kelsey O'Connell, Brittany Witt
2016: Kelsey O'Connell, Brittany Witt
2015: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen, Kelsey O'Connell
2014: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2013: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2012: Kate Elman, Ashley Jansen
2011: Julianne Mandolfo
2010: Lisa Greisch, Julianne Mandolfo
2009: Lisa Greisch
2008: Emily Crowley, Korie Lebeda
2007: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal
2006: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal, Emily Greisch
2005: Korie Lebeda, Katie Mehal
2004: Katie Mehal, Emily Greisch
2003: Emily Greisch
Production Returns
Creighton returns 8-of-13 letterwinners to the court from last season, including four starters and libero Brittany Witt.
From last year's team, only Marysa Wilkinson, Lydia Dimke, Kenzie Crawford, Jaclyn Taylor (transferred to Nebraska-Omaha) and Brittany Lawrence (graduated and transferred to Northern Colorado) are not back.
Below is a breakdown of the production that is back:
Stat Returners Departures
Assists 334 (22.7%) 1203 (77.3%)
Digs 1465 (76.7%) 444 (23.3%)
Aces 123 (80.9%) 29 (19.1%)
Kills 1164 (69.1%) 520 (30.9%)
Matches Started 118 (59.6%) 80 (40.4%)
Points 1428 (68.5%) 656 (31.5%)
Blocks 141 (56.9%) 107 (43.1%)
Against NCAA Tournament Qualifiers
Last season Creighton played 14 matches against 2016 NCAA Tournament qualifiers, going 8-6 against such teams.
This year's team will play 11 matches against teams that played in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, including 10-of-20 opponents so far this fall.
After going 3-35 against teams coming off NCAA Tournament bids prior to Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival, the Jays are 76-94 since.
Year W-L vs. Previous Season NCAA Teams
1994 0-4
1995 0-2
1996 0-2
1997 0-3
1998 0-5
1999 2-4
2000 0-4
2001 1-6
2002 0-5
2003 0-3
2004 2-2
2005 0-6
2006 4-6
2007 4-9
2008 6-8
2009 1-11
2010 4-7
2011 2-6
2012 8-3
2013 6-6
2014 4-5
2015 11-5
2016 10-7
2017 8-6
2018 6-4
TOTAL 79-129
TOTAL Under Booth 76-94
Lucky Number Seven
Kirsten Bernthal Booth is in some select company, as she directed her troops to seven NCAA Tournaments. That puts her in the company of some of the greatest coaches in CU Athletics history.
Booth is one of four head coaches in Creighton history to lead seven different NCAA Tournament teams, and tops among all females.
Name Sport NCAA's @CU
Bob Warming Men's Soccer 11
Kirsten Bernthal Booth Volleyball 7
Dana Altman Men's Basketball 7
Brent Vigness Softball 7
Elmar Bolowich Men's Soccer 6
Climbing The List
Kirsten Bernthal Boothbecame Creighton Volleyball's winningest coach in the program's modern history on August 26, 2007, and hasn't let up.
Booth won her 300th match at CU on Sept. 24 vs. Villanova, and now owns 335 victories on the Bluejay sideline to rank fifth in school history.
Coach, Sport Victories
Brent Vigness, Softball 757*
Mary Higgins, Softball 564
Ed Servais, Baseball 517*
Tom Lilly, Men's & Women's Tennis 427*
Kirsten Bernthal Booth, Volleyball 335*
Dana Altman, Men's Basketball 327
Jim Flanery, Women's Basketball 312*
*still active coaching at Creighton
All They Do Is Win
Creighton owns a 125-36 record since the start of the 2014 season. On a national basis, the 125 wins are ninth-most.
Most Wins, Since 2014 (through 10/21)
Rank School Wins
1. Penn State 138
2. Western Kentucky 137
3. BYU 136
4. Nebraska 133
5. Stanford 132
6. Washington 129
7. Florida 128
8. Dayton 126
9. Creighton 125
10. Texas 123
Colorado State 123
12. Minnesota 122
13. Wisconsin 121
American 121
This and That
Amaze your friends and neighbors with these nuggets...
• Creighton has won six sets this season after an opponent owned a set point.
• Creighton is the only team in the nation to rank in the top-10 in average home attendance in both women's volleyball and men's soccer.
• Jaali Winters has played in 55 matches that were either four-set or five-set contests. She's had 10 kills in all but one of them, and had nine in the other.
• Off to an 18-4 start this fall, Creighton's improved to 428-316 in program history. It marks the first time that CU has been more than 112 wins over .500, an impressive feat considering the program was 59 matches under .500 before Kirsten Bernthal Booth's arrival.
• Creighton owns multiple wins over top-25 teams for the fourth straight season. From 1994-2014, Creighton had a total of three seasons with one ranked win each.
• A win on Friday vs. No. 18 Marquette would be Creighton's third win this season over a ranked opponent, tying the school record for one fall done in 2017.
• Friday marks the sixth match of the fall against a ranked team, and 27th in the last four years after facing seven ranked teams each season in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
• All four of Creighton's seniors will graduate in December.
Players Mentioned
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/ VolleyballCreighton Volleyball vs Nebraska Postgame Press Conference Spring Match
Saturday, April 18
Nebraska Volleyball vs Creighton Postgame Press Conference Spring Match
Saturday, April 18
Creighton Volleyball Media Availability - 4/15/26
Wednesday, April 15
Creighton vs. Kentucky Volleyball Press Conference - 12/13/25
Sunday, December 14
